Heroes- The Staff of Life
by MammaTino
Summary: Emil was having a peaceful night in the comfort of his bed with the usual nightmares until a large man appeared in his dream, and the next thing he knew, he was off on a life-changing quest strapped with a sword and his only friend. Giant wolves attacking the city? Immortal gods who act like children? Long-Lost daddy issues? Welcome to the downfall of Emil's life.
1. Chapter 1- Run

**_Main Summary:_** ****

 **Emil was having a peaceful night in the comfort of his bed with the usual nightmares until a large man appeared in his dream, and the next thing he knew, he was off on a life-changing quest strapped with a sword and his only friend. The earth crumbles underneath their feet and beasts come out into the mortal world as they make their way through the alarmed streets, having to leave behind Emil's brother who shoved them out of their shabby apartment and said 'run'. Giant wolves attacking the city? Immortal gods who act like children? Long-Lost daddy issues? Welcome to the downfall of Emil's life.**

 ** _Ships:_** **HongIce, SuFin, DenNor**

 **Chapter 1- Run.**

When Emil woke up early that morning, he wasn't expecting to spend his afternoon out on the streets of Manhattan on the run from some unknown force to a destiny he never thought could happen. He wasn't expecting to see his older brother get shoved to the ground by something that was hard to make out in the darkness of their shabby apartment. He wasn't expecting to wake up on the day where his life would shatter into pieces right in front of his eyes.

But until then, life seemed to be going on like it usually would. The bright sun was hanging high in the winter sky and clouds drifted by lazily like the pedestrians down on the sidewalk. The young teen had just woken up from one of his regular nightmares and was staring up at the ceiling as he mused over the visions he saw in his sleep, trying to ignore the loud TV in the living room. There was Fire. There always was fire. The hot flames would surround him, slowly growing bigger and bigger with each passing , there was an owl in front of him, watching him spiral deeper into the nightmare with it's unnatural piercing blue eyes. Though this time, there was a wolf. The sudden change in his dreams should have made him a bit suspicious, but it wasn't important, right? The wolf, a rather large one, would send shivers down the teen's back every time he thought about it and freeze him in his spot. The beast would tower over the scalding flames, it's blood-red eyes would study him closely like he was a delicious piece of meat before it pounced, making him wake up in a cold sweat.

A shuddering breath left his dry lips as he thought about the strange dream, not understand why exactly his heart was beating so rapidly over something so trivial. He ran a hand through his snow-white hair and almost ripped a chunk off his head when he heard a loud crash outside his and his brother's bedroom, taking him by surprise. He quickly got out of his bed and threw the door open, surveying the chaotic and messy scene. His eyes widened when he saw the older male on the floor, surrounded by broken plates and cups, food and drinks splattered on the floor. "Lukas!"

Lukas shook his head and clutched his chest tightly with his right hand before pulling himself up with his left one, holding onto the kitchen counter as he started to slip on all the spilled juice. Emil quickly gripped his arm and held onto him before hauling him up onto his feet more easily. "Damn it Lukas...This is why I tell you to go to the hospital, you're getting worse!"

His brother shook his head again and waved him off. "I'm fine, I don't need the hospital. My magic's just acting up."

Emil rolled his eyes and picked up the broom in the corner of the cramped up kitchenette, sweeping all the bacon and ceramic away from Lukas so he wouldn't fall and get a face-full of delicious meat and painful shards. "Stop using that stupid 'magic is acting up' excuse, it's getting old..I'm not a kid anymore, Lukas. Just say the truth. Is it your heart?"

The teen watched the other closely, trying to mask the look of worry on his face. He remembered the first time his older brother had a similar attack and recalled the huge amount of fear that was in his heart at that time. He was just a small innocent boy, he was alone and the thought of his brother going away forever was too much for him to handle. Magic was the only excuse that would comfort him every time Lukas had his attacks.

But now it was just getting annoying.

"It's none of that." Lukas claimed before he snatched the broom out of Emil's hands to continue the clean up, acting like he didn't have some sort of heart attack earlier. "Bad things are going to happen, my magic can sense that and it's reacting to it."

"You've been saying that since Mor died and nothing happened."

"Maybe back then, no." He put the broom away and tossed a rag over to Emil so he could mop up the orange juice quickly. "But one of these days, something will happen. I can feel it." The teen scoffed and rolled his eyes again at how dramatic his brother was being before kneeling down to scrub the floor free of the sticky substance. "Yeah, to you. One day you'll get sent straight to the hospital and you'll never get out alive..." He trailed off and looked down at his lap guiltily as he stopped scrubbing at the tiles, trying his best to blink the pitiful tears away- embarrassed that he was being so weak.

He felt two arms wrap around his chest in a comforting manner, rubbing his back soothingly which were then pushed off of him angrily. "Stop that, I don't need your pity hugs."

He didn't notice the hurt look in Lukas' dark, mysterious violet eyes. Not that he cared in the first place. Why should he? His brother was just some jerk that didn't care about his own health and spend practically all day at work, doing weird 'magical' things that creeped out the neighbors.

After they cleaned up the mess silently, Emil took his brother's place at the stove and told him to go lay down on the couch to rest up and relax while he made breakfast with whatever food was in the fridge. He cursed at how bare it looked and reminded himself to go buy some food for the both of them later on in the afternoon since all they had left was a carton of eggs and a small pack of sausages. As he started cooking, he heard a small groan coming from his brother on the couch. "I'm fine, I swear. Lemme do my things."

Emil clenched his fists and snapped, "No! You just had a fucking heart attack, I'm not letting you do anything. What kind of shitty brother would I be!?"

Lukas scowled and sat up abruptly, glaring at the young teen. "Oi. Language. I'm the one taking care of you here."

He huffed and rolled his eyes, putting the food into two plates before placing them neatly on the counter, "Yeah right, as if..." he muttered to himself before he dug into his breakfast hungrily.

Emil didn't notice the way Lukas stormed over to the opposite side of the counter, as he was too busy thinking about all the things he had to do that day- He knew he had to buy some more food at the small market nearby before he'd go meet up with his friend at the park and spend the day with him. The plates and the cutlery shook slightly when his brother slammed his hands down onto the counter-top, glaring threateningly at the startled teen. At that moment, he knew that he messed up- but he wasn't about to go up to his brother sucker up to him in an attempt to get him to forgive Emil. He was way too stubborn to do that, he had to stand his ground. "What did you mean by that, _Emil?_ "

"I meant what I said." He crossed his arms gruffly and jutted out his chin, looking his fuming brother up and down. "You're barely ever home. And when you are, you're busy doing god knows what."

Emil watched Lukas curl his hands into tight, trembling fists while his jaw stiffened. "I work hard to keep us under this roof- it's not my fault I have to work longer hours so we make enough money to be comfortable. Plus, when I'm here with you, you're never paying attention to me- don't you want to spend time with me?"

"Maybe it's because I don't want to spend time with you!" He snapped, slamming his hands onto the counter in front of his brother's clenched fists, trying his best to match the older boy's glare in an attempt to get his point across.

And he did- but he took it too far.

A thick silence hung in the air like a large curtain, suffocating the teen, keeping him from saying what was on his mind. He wanted to move away from his brother and apologize for screaming at him, for being a horrible sibling that didn't appreciate the only family he had left- but nothing came out. His eyes were blown wide open with what he had said to Lukas and he started to hate himself when he saw his brother turn his back on Emil and walk away towards the open living room. "Lukas..."

"If you have such a problem with me, then you can leave."

"L-Lukas that's not what I wanted-"

His brother quickly turned to him, his cold purple eyes sent violent shivers down his spine which made him step back fearfully, pressing his back against the fridge. Emil noticed that his irises seemed to glow in the dimly-lit room, which seemed to lodge an unsettled feeling deep into his rapidly pounding heart. Before Lukas could snap back a response and send them spiralling into a heated argument, the doorbell rang. Emil gave a sigh of relief and headed over to answer, but he was quickly pushed aside by his brother, who threw the door open like some drunk maniac.

"They're here." A familiar voice said from the outside, which Emil instantly recognized as his best friend Leon Wang. He tried to move around Lukas, but he kept the teen away from seeing what was going on outside.

"Are you sure? It's too soon, it's still winter."

"I'm sure. The..Leader is on his way here right now. We have to hurry."

"Can someone tell me what the hell is going on?!" Emil protested, pushing Lukas away from the door so he could see what was going on, frowning when he noticed the distressed look on his Cantonese friend's face and the prominent heavy bags under his eyes. "Leon..?"

They ignored the young teen's demanding question, glancing around the apartment nervously. Lukas sighed and placed his hands behind his own neck, fumbling slightly, a look of worry and regret was evident on his face based on the way his lips were downturned. After a few quick seconds of fumbling and sighing repeatedly, Lukas held out a golden chain with a compass charm hanging neatly from the center of the necklace. "Take this, you'll need it."

"N-need it?" Emil watched as his brother took his hand and placed the piece of jewelry in his open palm, curling the teen's fingers around it so he was holding onto it tightly. "What do I need it for? What's going on?"

"So many questions and not enough time. Listen, I'm sorry this has to happen so soon- especially after that fight. But you have to get out of here quickly."

"I-I'm not leaving you, who'll take care of you when you have those heart atta-" He was quickly interrupted when he heard a loud explosion outside, causing the apartment to tremble as windows broke and car alarms blared, making them fall to the ground.

Once the shaking stopped, Leon and Emil sprung up to their feet, holding onto the doorway. The teen held out a hand to his brother in an attempt to help him up as well, but Lukas shook his head and swatted him away. "Go."

"I'm not going without you!"

 _"Run."_ The older male looked up at his brother from his spot on the floor and gave him a rough push as he got up onto his knees, watching as the Cantonese boy grabbed Emil's hand and pulled him away from the apartment and down the flights of stairs.

Before Emil was pulled out of the hallway, he caught a glimpse of his brother struggling to get up onto his feet before a dark shadow fell down on top of him, pushing him back onto the floor. But now the young Teen was out on the streets, letting his friend pull him along the panicked pathways of the city as he helplessly watched his apartment building tremble from the quakes, knowing that Lukas was in danger. But for now, all Emil could do was twist through the crowded sidewalks of manhattan towards an unkown fate.


	2. Chapter 2- To Dream or Not to Dream

**Chapter 2- Emil- To Dream or Not to Dream**

After that incident, things went by in a blur for Emil. All he could hear as he ran through the panicked streets of the city was a loud ringing in his ear that kept playing on and on, never stopping once to show mercy for the poor teen. It reminded him of the wretched heart monitors that he had grown to hate. His vision danced and swayed to non-existing music as he stared blankly at his friend's back, numbly running after him as the earth trembled underneath his bare feet. He couldn't look back. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't crane his head to look at the scene he had left behind. The scene where his older brother, the only family he had left in this world, was left behind to die.

Emil was mad- no, he was much more than simply mad. He was absolutely livid, furious beyond belief. His entire being was filled with hot rage and resentment towards Leon. How could he? How could Leon, the friend he had trusted so much, rip him away from the safety and reassurance of his brother? How could he be so stupid? It didn't matter if Lukas was urging them to run on his own. They should have grabbed him and dragged him out of that crumbling apartment. Emil should have yelled at them. He should have slapped Leon for having the audacity to abandon his brother when there was a chance to save him.

The teen's heart ached greatly as he stared at the back of his friend's head, ignoring all the pedestrians screaming and trying to find something safe to hold onto. It's not like he could hear them anyways. The only thing on his mind was his brother. Desperate questions and scenarios kept cycling through his brain, echoing in his numb mind over and over again in a way that would have driven him insane.

He should have screamed.

He should have fought back.

He should have grabbed Lukas' hand.

He should have reacted better.

So why didn't he?

Emil swore this was all just a dream. It could have all just been another one of his usual nightmares. He wished that this was all fake. He wished that his brain just decided to pull an early april-fools prank on him and make him suffer for something stupid he did in the past year. But no matter how much he hoped or wished, he couldn't keep out the truth. Reality kept seeping into the gaping cracks of his mind, replacing all the wishful thinking with its unwanted presence. The ringing in his ear, the tight grip Leon had on his wrist, the tremors that sent unpleasant shocks up his legs- no, they were too real. He didn't have to pinch himself to tell that he wasn't dreaming.

The scene around him changed from the large streets and tall buildings towards a packed path where market stalls and tiny restaurants sat on each side of the path, waiting for people to come and spend their money on good food or cheap gimmicks and toys. They were getting farther and farther from his home...Farther from his brother. That means there's less chance of Emil saving him. Through his daze and confusion, he managed to get his thoughts together and grit his teeth as he weakly tried to pull his arm out of Leon's strong grip, wanting so badly to escape and run back to the apartment complex. Maybe Lukas escaped? Maybe he was out on the street too? Maybe he was still alive? Emil struggled to pull away from Leon, his movements sluggish and slow, feet dragging onto the pavement as he tried to slow them down.

Then everything disappeared.

All of his surroundings seemed to have vanished into thin air and Emil felt like he was floating, as his feet didn't seem to be touching the ground. God, his day just couldn't get any worse, could it? He tried to kick his legs, squirming and twisting in his little spot as he tried to find a way out.

All he could see was his pajama bottoms, a pair that he was usually a bit embarrassed to wear around others since the patterns were pretty childish. Well, by now the entire city of New York knew about his embarrassing batman pajamas.

As he mused over how to regain his honor and how to punish Leon for letting Lukas die, a soft yellow light surrounded his form, filling him with a sense of warmth and fear. There was something a bit intimidating about it, something powerful and strong that made him want to straighten his back and salute whatever was awaiting him in the abyss. Though as soon as the light disappeared, he was suddenly hit with a horrid stench like a brick to his face before he noticed that his surroundings had changed as well. He was in a decently compact room that was seemed so cold and lifeless with it's sickly gray walls and the dull stoned floor. His heart jolted a bit in his chest when he heard a monotonous dripping noise coming from somewhere in the room.

Emil fearfully tried to back away, wincing as his foot touched some warm liquid. ' _Don't look'_ he thought to himself, ' _Let's just say it's warm water.'_

All of this was new to him, he was so used to the usual reoccurring dreams that something so different frightened him. He stood there in the still silence as an inner turmoil took place inside his mind. It felt like there were little people in his head like from that kids' movie Inside Out, all of them squabbling at each other around a table as they tried to figure out what to do next. ' _To explore or not to explore, that is the question.'_

"Whether 'tis nobler in the mind-"

Emil's heart practically ripped out of his chest and oh boy, he had never screamed that way in his life.

"Why so scared? 's just Hamlet."

The teen whirled around and stumbled back, pressing himself up against a wall as he tried to find the origin of the loud, booming voice. It had a bit of a thick accent, but he had managed to understand it. At least, he thought he did. He didn't even pay attention to what it was saying. "Sh-show yourself! I'm not scared of you, you cowardly nerd."

"Says th' person who screams like a girl." The voice responded, a little quieter this time.

He huffed and placed his hands on his hips, jutting out his chest to try and show that he was brave enough to take on a challenge. He wasn't just going to let this mystery man doubt his masculinity. "Lies! I was uh- I was practicing some vocal talent..stuff. And that didn't answer my question, come out here and show yourself."

Emil felt intimidating, but deep down inside he knew it wasn't going to work. A frail awkward teen in batman pajamas? Not the epitome of scary.

"Mhm...Sure." He heard a few soft and pained grunts along with some rustling coming from one of the corners, "Jus' give me a second. I'd rather look presentable if ya want ta see me."

The teen shakily sighed as he leaned against the wall, crossing his arms while he kept his eyes glued to the corner. This wasn't like his usual dreams. His usual dreams where chaotic and tense, filling him with a sense of horror and dread. Though even if there was someone to socialize in this vision, there was something off. If they were in a dungeon, would he get attacked by this stranger? It only made sense- this could be another nightmare.

Emil was too busy trying to be a detective and figure out how to deal with the situation that he didn't notice the tall figure step out of the shadow. Anyone could tell at first glance that this stranger was a man. His build seemed to be muscular and hard, but his body was covered by a clean suit that hugged his body snugly in a few places. Sure, his didn't really match the 'doom and gloom' theme of the dungeon, but he looked quite handsome in it. The only thing that ruined this man from looking like a complete Prince Charming was his intimidating height and stare.

When he looked up at the stranger, he stepped back instinctively. He seemed so regal and powerful, but his piercing stare did seem a little broken. "J-jeez, what is a businessman doing in a place like _this_?"

The man rolled his eyes and placed his hands behind his back, looking down at the much smaller teen, "Nothin' much, jus' hangin' around."

"And hanging around for you is reciting hamlet and scaring the crap out of people?"

The man shrugged, "What? Is a man not allowed ta enjoy shakespeare? 'S a great way ta pass the time. I have all the plays memorized." He tapped the side of his head before he stepped back a bit, probably noticing the way Emil squirmed uncomfortably.

"Jeez, you must have no life."

"Look who's talkin'."

Emil huffed and crossed his arms indignantly, turning his head away from the stranger in a stubborn manner. Once he had looked away, his eyes widened at the bloody weapons lined against the tiled walls along with the chains hanging down from several different heights. Yep, he was probably dead. Though before he could ask where they were, a deep blood-curdling scream echoed throughout the room, making him step back and quickly cover his ears. "W-what the hell…"

The stranger didn't seem to react much. He just blinked and shook his head, running a hand quickly through his hair as he let out a long sigh. "Apologies for the Agonized screaming, I think I'm being tortured."

Emil didn't bother pointing out his sudden accent change, he just blinked at him in confusion. He wasn't the smartest person alive, but he did have a right to be utterly confused about how this guy could be in two places at once. This guy was probably houdini. The man noticed his blank look and shook his head, waving his hand a bit in dismissal. "I'll get to that in a moment, don't worry. I'm running out of time, so let's get down to business."

The teen stood still as he watched Jr. adjust his glasses, the lenses glinting slightly in the dim light of the torch. "My name is Berwald. I'm the god of knowledge and heroes, and I need your help."


	3. Chapter 3

He really wished someone would have warned him that his life would spiral down into chaos.

He expected for his life to go on normally, or, well, as normally as it could go. He expected to graduate and get a stupid job and live out his stupid life, but the world just really hated him, did it? Now the teen was probably going crazy all that happened in just a span of two measly hours that he will probably hate for the rest of his life.

"I'm sorry, What?"

Berwald sighed and rubbed his face, his figure slumping forward a bit like he was about to collapse onto the floor. The poor guy looked so lost and helpless, maybe a bit angry at the world. Or maybe he was just about ready to give up on Emil. "Look...I don't have much time, so we have to make this quick."

He nodded silently and watched him, waiting for the Swede to continue.

"We're all in danger... You are all in danger." He paused for a quick second to cough in his hand, wincing. "None of us are safe anymore. My brother has stolen something vitally important from my lover, and if no one get's it back...he'll die. And so will all of you."

Emil furrowed his brow and sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Great. Now his dreams were trying to make things worse. If his mind's goal was to stress him out even more, then it was seriously working. His mind deserved a promotion for being a total pain in the ass. "Look, your holiness...highness...mister Berwald. I've already had it up to here-" he placed his hand on the top of his head, "-with life. I really just want to die right now if you want me to be honest."

He honestly had enough. He was tired and still in shock from what happened earlier. He had just watched an entire building collapse on top of his brother and a lot of other people while his best friend friend let him die. He was still so confused with everything and he wanted to scream.

"I understand what you're going through. But please...If you don't do this, you'll have nothing left. He'll stop at nothing to bring misery to this world." Berwald stepped forward and placed his hands on the teen's shoulders, making emil wince.

He brushed off his hands and shook his head, stepping away. "Please, leave me alone.. And why is this thing so important? How important is your lover?"

"He's the god of Nature. He created practically everything in existence- he's practically mother nature." He sighed sadly and looked away, a look of pain evident in his unnaturally bright turqouise eyes. "If he dies, then it's the end of the world."

A heavy lump formed in his throat and he shook slightly. Realising how stupid he looked, he crossed his arms and pretended he was just cold. Hey, the possible end of the world was coming, but fear cannot be shown. No matter how dire the situation, emotions were absolutely not allowed.

Was the world really about to end? Sure, a tiny part of him couldn't wait for the sweet release of death, but the majority of him was thinking sensibly. Sure he wasn't happy with himself, but did he really want to let so many innocent people perish just because Emil wasn't fine enough to get off his butt and help a poor god. A storm of thoughts and emotions brewed in his head, twisting and churning uncontrollably, almost making him sick.

Was this the real life? Or was this just fantasy?

Berwald stood in front of him, tapping his foot impatiently against the stone floor while Emil mused over his thoughts. "Emil, I need yer help. Badly. I chose ya because i know you can do this."

"This isn't true..."

"Hm?"

"This is just a stupid dream- everything's okay. You don't exist-"

"Emil," he interrupted, "I'm as real as it can get. Listen, I can't speak for long. You and your friend are our only hope. It'll get hard, sure, but that's what life is. It's not something you can just glide through without a scratch. By the end of this, you're going to be scarred, battered and almost dead." he drew in a shaky breath, his brows furrowing as he winced in pain, "this is the fate of a hero. There is no escaping it."

The teen bit his lip and and looked around him nervously, "I-"

He was quickly interrupted by a loud bang and he jumped in surprise, his hand pressing against his rapidly beating heart. Before he could ask any questions, he heard loud swears echo in the air, a harsh voice hurling sick insults at no one in particular. Berwald cringed and sighed, shaking his head while the screaming raged on. "Sorry 'bout that, I can't block it out anymore."

"W-who is that?"

"That's my brother, the one doing all of this. Don' worry, he's on his man period like always." The god smirked and crossed his arms, a small wince evident on his face. "So, are you in?"

Emil slumped his shoulders and looked up at him, his head still swarming with questions and emotions that he didn't know how to convey, "I just..." He sighed, "I don't...I-"

Before he could finish his sentence, a howling scream tore through the air and the floor trembled underneath him until everything caved in on top of him, encasing him in rubble and hard stone, the world around him going dark.


	4. Chapter 4

When Emil opened his eyes, he gasped for breath and sat up, clutching his chest as he tried to get his lungs to start working properly. The room was dark except for the pale light of the crescent moon hanging in the sky, peeking shyly out from behind a building. He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and continued to tremble for a few seconds, his heart going wild from the way that dream took a turn.

Once he came to his senses, he felt a weight on his waist and turned to his right to see Leon sleeping on the edge of the small bed, holding onto the Icelandic so he wouldn't fall off the side and end up sleeping on the floor as he snored and drooled blissfully. With a sigh, he ran a hand through his hair before shifting Leon's arm away from him to crawl off the bed, trying to be as gentle and silent as possible, even though the other was probably able to sleep through a nuclear war.

The teen tiptoed through the dark room, bumping his hip against the desk along the way, wincing when the digital clock tipped over the side and tumbled onto the floor, probably leaving a little dent on the wooden floor. He stood still for a moment before relaxing slightly when he heard the loud snores coming from the teen. He quickly grabbed one of Leon's jackets and left the room, shuffling slowly out of the apartment and down to the tight market street that still had a few people milling around, even though it was 3 AM.

Walking down the sidewalk, he tried to think over the dream he had last night. The words Berwald had spoken were imbedded deep into him, twisting and churning in his mind until his head ached. " _"None of us are safe anymore. My brother has stolen something vitally important from my lover, and if no one get's it back...he'll die. And so will all of you.""_

" _Why can't you gods get it back?"_ He wanted to ask, " _You guys are more powerful, why do I have to do this?'_

He felt a bit like a brat, thinking that way- but it was true. He had no reason to go on this stupid quest, especially when it was so important. Especially when it could bring the end of the world. ' _I'm a nobody'_ he thought, ' _That god of wisdom is probably a bit dumber than I thought.'_

Reaching around the corner of the last building on the street, cars passing him as he made his way to the nearest park that nestled in the city. Shadows danced against the wall beside him and the street light above him flickered slightly. A cat sitting on a windowsill followed Emil with its gaze, it's green eyes seeming to shine in the darkness before jumping down onto the ground and scampering off. Everything seemed awfully quiet.

The teen let out a shaky breath and looked up at the sky as he tried to calm himself down. Nothing was going to happen. ' _It was only a dumb dream. Gods don't exist, especially those with a name like_ Berwald _.'_

He muttered those phrases over and over under his breath, staring down at the dirty snow that was starting to melt from all the salt that was thrown onto it a few hours ago. He was so worked up about the dream that he didn't notice the way the lights flickered like mad and the way the shadows around him stretched until he heard a gentle whisper in his ear and his heart practically jolted out of his chest.

A chill ran up his spine and he quickly turned around, slapping a hand on his ear instinctively as he scanned the sidewalk behind him to see if there was some sly creep trying to kidnap him.

It was empty.

He held his breath in fear and screwed his eyes shut as the whispering continued, slowly growing louder and louder, the voices doubling in numbers as they spoke at different paces, seeming to speak gibberish. Something in him made the teen open his eyes and something on the wall caught his attention, making him slowly crane his head to the side, a lump instantly forming in his throat.

On the wall, the shadows started to slowly change form, gliding on the surface before they stuck to the form of a wolf, their red eyes glinting slightly, peering into the vulnerable teen's soul. Soon, they slid down to the ground and took shape, sticking to the dark patches of the sidewalk as they stalked up to him. Emil backed up slowly and turned on his heel, breaking into a fast sprint as he tried to escape those _things._

Emil twisted and turned down the sidewalk, slipping and sliding on the melting snow that riddled the concrete sidewalk. The whispers continued to haunt his ears but he tried to ignore them, as they weren't his main priority at the moment. He kept bumping against poles and signs but he didn't stop to whine and fawn over his bruises. He had time for nothing else but running.

The teen ran across the empty road and onto the sidewalk opposite him and onto a patch of snow-covered grass, trying his best to stay away from the shadiest areas of (what he thought to be) the park. The low growling of the beasts made his heart pang when he heard them. They sounded so vile, so cruel- he could practically feel all the rage and hunger in those monsters as they chased him throughout the entire city.

His feet started to ache but he pushed himself on, running around hysterically like a frightened prey before he noticed an orange light peeking behind the trees. He licked his chapped lips nervously and decided to make a run for it. Even if he had to pass under the dark shade of the trees.

Stumbling through the barrier of trunks and leaves, he reached a quaint playground with swings and jungle gyms and slides small enough to keep little children safe from falling and snapping a leg in half. He struggled to run through the sand and cursed when he felt himself slow down, hearing the thumping of the creatures quickly approach him. Desperately, Emil picked up an abandoned plastic bucket and filled it with sand before pathetically throwing it at the closest beast, which hit it on the head and made it stumble back in confusion. The teen took it as a chance to keep running before he got devoured, and sprinted for the nearest street-lamp, clinging onto the pole in fear as he stood directly underneath the bright light.

The thumping of the beasts grew louder, making a gruelling noise as they approached the cowering teen before they stopped right at the border of the light, hissing and screeching in pain. Emil puffed out his chest and picked up a small plastic spade from the ground, holding it out like a weapon. "Yeah that's right- I'm way stronger than you. Fear me!"

The beasts growled as their eyes glowed brighter and the group circled Emil, some of them multiplying into other beasts so they could grow greater and greater in number. He gulped and trembled slightly before taking a deep breath. This light was his only hope. If it turned off, he was definitely dead meat. He had to think of a plan quick.

He saw a beast approach cautiously and Emil let out a quick scream, waving his spade of glory in the air to try and ward it off. He didn't know if he succeeded or not, but the fact that he was still alive was good enough for him. "Ha ha! Beat that, suckers." he taunted. "You'll never get a piece of this juicy meat-"

A loud pop resonated through the park and flakes of glass fell on top of Emil's hair like snow, his heart going still when he realized the lamp exploded. Laughing nervously, he backed up blindly, "O-okay no worries- j-just a joke, right? No hard feelings? We're all good, yeah?"

He heard a loud barking and broke into a sprint, barely missing one of the beasts who tried to lash out and bite his calf. He stumbled to one of the tunneled slides and pushed himself up on top of it, climbing up the tube in desperation before reaching the top. He squeezed his eyes shut and held his breath, trembling in fear as he waited for the worst. It was a life well lived.

Well,

Not really.

Two hands grabbed him and pulled him backwards, making him hit his head against one of the safety poles on the Jungle Gym, making him wince. Looking around frantically, he saw the silhouette of a girl jump onto the sand, brandishing a silver trident that glinted in the dim moonlight before it sunk deep into one of the shadowed creatures, pushing it back. The woman pushed the forked weapon deeper into its side before an explosion of light burst from the weapon, illuminating the dark sky for a quick second before it disappeared. Emil's eyes stung from the flash and blinked repeatedly, trying his best to see again so he could understand what was happening.

"You should be more careful, my child."

A warm, soft womanly voice reached his ears, putting him quickly at ease. Once his eyes focused, he saw the girl crouching beside him. The teen was almost completely covered up in black clothing, making her blend into the dark winter night. Her hair was tied up into low pigtails but her long, thick curls strained against the hair ties. Her smooth skin seemed like milk chocolate under the soft moonlight, but what got to Emil the most, was her eyes.

Her irises constantly shifted from color to color, shining brightly and bringing light to her features. Emil could feel his breath leave his body as he stared into her hypnotic eyes, making his head feel light. He snapped his attention away from his face when she spoke.

"You are not safe here."

Her voice didn't exactly match her body. She had the physique of a teen, someone with an age similar to Emil's, but her voice sounded like something older, almost more ancient. "U-uhm..Wait, who are you?"

"I have no time for introductions." She quickly responded, "You must be prepared."

The teen winced slightly when she placed her cold hands on his cheek, her irises brightening as she let out a long breath. Emil looked around awkwardly and tried to move his face away, but the lady had a pretty strong grip on him.

' _The beast lets out a bellowing roar,_

 _A lost hero shall rise once more._

 _And amidst the waking call,_

 _One shall face their fated fall.'_

"U-uh, lady-?"

' _When the sun has lost it's breath,_

 _The crumbling earth shall see it's death,_

 _A lone warrior buried in strife,_

 _Shall retrieve the staff of life.'_

Emil let out a breath and ripped his face out of her hands, quickly standing up. "L-listen, you've got the wrong guy here-"

"Go."

"What?"

"Go to your destiny." The girl let out a final breath before collapsing, laying on the jungle-gym platform next to the tubed slide. He blinked in surprise and cautiously walked over to her, shaking her shoulder lightly. "U-uh, hello..?"

As soon as he touched her, her eyes flew open and she sat up again, looking around in alarm. Her irises had shifted instantly to a Honey-brown color and the girl stood up. Emil backed up in surprise before the girl jumped over the railing and landing on the sand. "H-hey, wait a minute!"

The girl threw a glance back at him and gave a wave, "Don't worry, I always wake up in strange places. I would stay and talk, but my mom will skin me alive!" She shook her head before turning on her heel and rushing out of the park, running down the street, disappearing from Emil's sight. He tried to run after her but the girl was way faster than he thought and his legs gave out underneath him, making him fall and scrape his hands against the cold asphalt.

He saw the sun slowly start to rise and he struggled to get up to his feet, his eyes drooping heavily from fatigue. He saw the familiar form of Leon run up to him and he felt an arm hook around him, pulling him properly up to his feet. "Emil, what the hell are you doing!?"

Emil muttered back a response and turned away, slumping forward a bit. "You could have gotten killed out here! Come on," he adjusted his hold on Emil and started walking forward, "Let's get home before everyone wakes up, or else we're dead meat."


	5. Chapter 5

The cold air swept around the teen as he sat on the roof of the apartment building, his legs dangling dangerously over the side as he looked on in the distance. While Leon's family was happily asleep, the large city remained wide awake, buzzing with life. The shining lights of the nightclubs and the car lights coming from the roads were so bright they put the stars in hiding. But the beautiful scenery was disturbed by a dark smear where all light and life was sucked out. Where his old home used to be.

Letting out a shaky breath and hunching his back slightly, he tore his gaze from the horizon so he was looking down at the street below.

It was unusually quiet, especially with the lack of Leon to pester him constantly with his stories and ideas. Was it really a nuisance? He didn't know, but he wished that there was some other noise apart from the distant sound of traffic and his own reoccurring thoughts. He wondered why his friend didn't come running up to him to scold him for sitting on the edge and risking his life. Maybe it was because of the argument they just had. Maybe it was because of those harsh words that were exchanged between the two as they had to resist the urge to scream eat each other. Sure, shadow beasts were scary and all. But leon's mom could send those monsters crying to the master if she wanted to. Waking her up would mean the immediate death of the teens.

He gripped onto the edge of his perch tightly as a strong gust of wind blew past him, making his heart lurch into his throat. He wasn't a big fan of heights, but he wanted to stay as far away from Leon as possible.

Emil screwed his eyes shut as hi thoughts started to grow louder and louder until the words of that girl were so loud he couldn't think straight His breath was coming short and he clutched his spinning head, clawing at his scalp and tugging at his hair as if it would help the situation at hand. The words, the whispers, he dream- why couldn't anyone leave him alone?

His eyes started to sting as they brimmed with tears and he blinked rapidly to try and stop them. 'Go to your destiny', 'the crumbling earth shall see it's death', 'this is the fate of a hero. There is no escaping it.'

As soon as his body started to tremble, he felt a thick material drape onto his shoulders, encasing him with a familiar warmth that could only belong to his friend, Leon. And yes, it was totally normal to recognize people's warmth.

He didn't turn to look at his companion as he nervously sat down on the edge next to emil, who moved away a few inches. "Em…"

"I'm not talking to you."

"Emil, please. Listen to me."

Emil ignored him, resulting in a sigh from the teen beside him. "C'mon, stop being such a hermit. It's getting annoying."

"If it really annoys you, then go away or something. I'm not forcing you to stay here."

"We really need to talk about all this. It's serious, especially with what the woman said."

"What does it matter? That girl was probably crazy. You weren't there, you didn't hear the way she talked and grabbed my face. All that she said probably means nothing." He took a shuddering breath and crossed his arms tightly over his chest, looking down at his lap. "And you already had the chance to talk to me like a decent human being, but it's too late for that now."

"I'm sorry okay?"

Leon reached out to take his arm but Emil moved it away, sliding further from the other teen to try and avoid him. He could feel leon's hazel eyes stare at the back of his head and he felt dumb arguing to him like this. That didn't mean he would stop. He had a point and he was right. He was not going to give into him.

"I feel like a husband trying to calm down his wife after an argument."

"Well if that were the case, I would demand a divorce immediately."

Leon let out a dry chuckle and moved closer to him again, almost cornering the icelandic teen. "C'mon, I'm really sorry. I was all pent up and pissed off and frustrated and I took it all out on you." he breathed out. "So let's just put this all behind us, alright? Let's just think about all this weird stuff going on, alright?"

Emil sighed and moved off the ledge so he was sitting away from the edge. He pulled his knees up and placed his chin on them, letting out a few gentle breaths as he thought to himself. "The gods…"

"Eh?"

"I dunno, but when I was sleeping I had a dream."

Leon's eyes widened and he stood up, quickly moving to sit in front of Emil with a curious and alarmed look in his eyes. "Who was it? How did they look like? What did they say? What happened- is everything okay-"

"I was getting to that, you dimwit." he lightly smacked the top of his friend's head and rolled his eyes. "As I was saying, I had a dream. This guy called Berwald said he was the god of wisdom and other stuff- he recited some hamlet, scared the crap out of me, told me about some quest I had to take, then there was a scream and I woke up."

A silence fell on them and Leon bit his lip as he stared down at his hands pensively, his brown bangs hanging covering his eyes and hiding them from the world. Emil didn't say anything else about the unsettling dream, as he waited patiently for his friend's reaction.

"What does the quest call for?"

Emil blinked and frowned in confusion, straightening his back slightly as he studied the asian boy's features. He seemed awfully calm about all of this. "Wait, how are you so calm about all this? I was attacked by some shadow things and now I'm talking about gods and quests and you're treating it like it's a normal thing."

"Of course I am. I know about the gods- I've known about them since I was, like, ten."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wasn't allowed to. Anyways, what is the purpose of the quest? What do they need?"

"He said that this other guy took this thing called 'the staff of life' from his lover and that the world would end if I didn't get it back. What is it? What's that thing for?"

Leon seemed to have paled, but it was hard to see in the dark. Emil cautiously reached out and nudged his shoulder, worried that his companion would be sick or would faint. After a few more moments of silence, Leon's crackling voice spoke up. "That man must be crazy to steal something like that…"

"What?"

"The Staff of Life is one of the most important things in this world- Hell, it's the most important thing in existence! It maintains life and keeps the god of nature strong. Without it, he's vulnerable." He lowered his voice slightly at the last part, looking around nervously. "With the way things are going now, if he doesn't get it back, we're all done for. Emil, I'm coming with you on that quest-"

"Leon, I don't know if I'm even going?"

"Are you crazy?" he said, his voice shuddering and cracking as it raised suddenly. "You need to go! You're going to get everyone killed if you don't. What about the prophecy?"

"What about it? She said 'When the sun has lost it's breath, The crumbling earth shall see it's death.' It's going to die anyways, there's nothing I can do about it." He took a shuddering breath and buried his face in his knees, "Even if I get it back, nothing will change. Don't you get it? It's all useless.."

The cantonese boy stared at him for a few moments and reached out, placing his hand on his shoulder. "Whether that's true or not, you need to do this. And.. I'll come with you. You need to have someone that knows at least a thing or two about these gods. And once this is over, you can kick me in the balls and 'divorce' me or whatever and it'll be back to normal."

Emil blinked and sighed looking up at the horizon as an orange and yellow hue appeared from beyond, it's light licking the night sky and pushing it back so the day would come. He watched the stars disappear and he relaxed, holding his hand out in defeat. "Alright, deal…"

Leon grinned triumphantly and shook his hand, but didn't move closer to him. He could still feel a small sense of hostility radiating from the other. "Also, how do you know so much about those gods..?"

"Oh, that? I'm a demigod, so I know a thing or two."

Great.


End file.
